Category: NASCAR Cup PR

MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
AAA TEXAS 500
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
NOVEMBER 1, 2019

WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1, Media Breakout Session Highlights:

YOUR CAR LOOKED PRETTY SPORTY IN PRACTICE. TALK ABOUT IT.
“It was good. I think the first couple of runs weren’t quite as good as we wanted them to be, but once we kind of got the balance of our car a little better, I thought it was pretty good. I think the Toyota’s and the Gibbs’ guys are really fast. It’s going to be pretty tough to compete with that, but I think we are in the ballpark I would say with where we have been on 1.5-mile tracks. I feel really optimistic.”

INAUDIBLE
“No, I mean not yet. It’s not completely worked in yet, so I’m hoping some of these Xfinity guys kind of work it in. It’s kind of like playing with fire; you don’t really know what’s up there and you don’t really know if it’s got grip or not yet. So, you don’t want to be the first guy to test that out. I’ll try not to get in it where I really feel like I’m going to use it because I feel like it’s not quite there.”

ARE THE COOLER TEMPERTURES GOING TO MAKE THE TRACTION COMPOUND MORE CHALLENGING?
“It is. I feel like the reason it comes in so well during the race is because the lap cars have to run in there. They aren’t going to run the preferred lane, so they are going to run right in it and that’s typically going to heat it up enough for it to be a factor. It seems like it takes a couple of runs for it to actually activate right away. I feel like I’ve noticed how in the beginning of the race, it comes in at the end of a long run. At the restart, it’s not there at all. By the end of the race, it’s there on a restart. I don’t know if that’s something just I’ve learned, but it seems like it’s been that way.”

IT SEEMS LIKE LAST WEEKEND, YOU HAD A REALLY GOOD PACE THERE AT THE END. TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE END OF MARTINSVILLE.
“Yeah, it’s easy to say a few more laps, but I think we had a chance there with about 35 laps to go. We got to his (Martin Truex Jr.)’s back bumper and the caution came out right away. That was a bummer, but that’s last week. We had a great run. I feel like we’ve been running really well the past month or so. I think if we can continue what we did last weekend into this week, which is kind of hard to say for a short track versus a 1.5-mile track, but that momentum carries on through communication and things like that. We’ll see what happens.”

HOW IS THE TEAM MORALE RIGHT NOW?
“It’s been great. We’ve really clicked. I would say since Darlington, we’ve really had a good idea of what we want to do. It’s been great, so I think we just have to continue to improve and keep that momentum rolling.”

HOW DIFFICULT IS TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY? WHAT MAKES A GOOD RACE CAR?
“Man, I feel like turns three and four have to be pretty respectable because it’s an important end of the race track. So, three and four have to be decent. But I feel like you make your money here in one and two with the way the car gets into turn one and having the ability to control where you put it. I feel like that’s kind of the key here; just making sure you’re nailing the car on the white line in one and two, and that’s really what makes the speed.”

CAN YOU TAKE ANYTHING FROM THE SPRING RACE THAT WILL HELP YOU AT ALL THIS WEEKEND?
“Yeah, it’s definitely a lot different than when we came here the first time. But I feel like it’s still some of the same contenders and same guys that are going to be fast. I feel like it’s going to be similar because the same guys are going to be competitive. But that was a long time ago and a lot of things have changed, too.”

A LOT OF THE GUYS IN THE BOOTH WHERE TALKING ABOUT HOW CLOSE YOU ARE TO GETTING YOUR FIRST WIN. AROUND HALF SAID BEFORE HOMESTEAD AND THE OTHERS SAID EARLY NEXT SEASON. I KNOW YOU WOULD LIKE TO GET IT DONE BEFORE HOMESTEAD.
“Yeah, that’d be awesome. We’ve been really close and that’s definitely our number one goal on our mind for the next three weeks. I feel like these next two tracks are ones that could present a really good opportunity for us.”

WHAT WOULD YOU DO TO GET YOUR FIRST WIN?
“Like I said last weekend, I’m not going to race someone dirty. But, at this point, I’m just trying to get my first win and trying to break the seal is going to be really important to me and my team. I definitely have to be conscience of the Playoff guys and making sure I don’t interfere with that. At the same time, I’m here to race and try to win. If I get the opportunity to try to win, then I’m going to go for it.”

IT WOULD BE A HUGE SPOILER FOR SOME OF THOSE GUYS. DOES THAT WEIGH ON YOU AT ALL?
“I would be a spoiler for one guy, but the other guys would probably be pulling for it because they don’t want to see another Playoff guy win. They want to have as many spots available as possible. I think it would be kind of a welcome sight for some of those guys.”

WHEN YOU LOOK BACK ON THE SEASON, SAY IT WOULD END THIS WEEKEND, WOULD YOU CONSIDER IT A SUCCESS?
“Absolutely. We’ve gone from being a 20th place team to finishing, hopefully, in the top-10 in points. I think that would be awesome. A lot of credit goes to Chad (Knaus) for that and the people he’s put around me. I feel like we’ve really elevated the performance of this team and giving it a good vibe. I’m just excited for what’s ahead for us. I think if we can keep the same group of guys intact for a while, we’ll be really strong.”

ARE YOU AT THE POINT THAT WHEN YOU GET TO THE WEEKEND, YOU FEEL LIKE YOU’RE CAPABLE OF WINNING?
“Before this weekend, I would say that I felt capable of top-five’s and top-three’s maybe. But showing up to the track this weekend, I feel capable of winning. So, I think that’s really exciting for our team and it’s kind of the first time I’ve felt that excited since the Truck days.”

IS THERE ANY PARTICULAR REASON WHY?
“Just how we’ve run and how we’ve run as of late. The way things are, you kind of have to run well every week to win. So, I feel like we are getting closer and closer to that.”

Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.

About Chevrolet
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Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS)
Friday, November 1, 2019

AAA Texas 500 | MEDIA AVAILABILITY

JOEY LOGANO, No. 22 AAA Insurance Ford Mustang

DENNY HAMLIN MADE A COUPLE OF COMMENTS TODAY. HE THOUGHT YOUR CREW CHIEF WAS NOT IN CONTROL OF YOUR TEAM AND THAT WAS PART OF WHY THERE WAS A FIGHT. HE ALSO SAID WHEN ASKED WHETHER YOU WERE JUST TRYING TO GET IN HIS HEAD THAT YOU WERE JUST NOT THAT SMART. DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE A RIVALRY OR JUST DON’T LIKE EACH OTHER OR WHAT? “I am sure he will turn it in that way. Here are the facts. I think Todd (Gordon) has great control of our race team and is a great crew chief and does a great job leading all of us. I said it after the race to TV that I probably shouldn’t have gone down there looking for an apology for something he probably wasn’t going to apologize for and I let my emotions get the best of me. That was a mistake on my part. I probably didn’t handle that correctly. It doesn’t make what he did on the race track right but I think at the same time he will probably play that card as much as he wants, he can run his mouth as much as he wants. I am going to run my race and we will see who ends up ahead.”

ARE YOU RIVALS? ENEMIES? “I don’t know. Time will tell.”

HE ACTUALLY OWNED THE THING ON THE RACE TRACK AND SAID THAT WAS A MISTAKE ON HIS PART BUT HE ALSO SAID THAT AS A MAN HE WASN’T GOING TO LET YOU TOUCH HIM. “That is fine. He didn’t own up to it when we talked about it at the time. For me, as a man, the frist thing I do is own up to my mistakes. I probably would have walked down to him if I did the same thing and said I was sorry and that I screwed up. That is what sent me off the edge. Like I said, I am regretful of the way I handled it. I let someone affect my character and that is something I am not proud of. We get stronger from these moments and you live and you learn and you move on. It is part of our sport and part of the situation, part of the playoffs. You guys all have something to talk about now.”

IS HE MAYBE TRYING TO PLAY HEAD GAMES? “He can try. I am a little tougher than he thinks.”

TO BE CLEAR, WHEN YOU HAD YOUR BRIEF CONVERSATION ON PIT ROAD, HE NEVER TOOK RESPONSIBILITY FOR WHAT HAPPENED, IS THAT RIGHT? “Not in the way I expected. He just said he needed all the space. I don’t know. I was there. I couldn’t give any space. I was in the wall.”

HOW DO YOU RACE HIM THE REST OF THE YEAR? “The way I want to.”

IS HE UNDERESTIMATING YOU? “He might. I am sure he does inside his mind. Anytime something like this happens, the games are played. He is handling it a different way than I would have but we aren’t the same person and that is okay. Whatever you are into. However you want to handle things. Like I said, I am not proud of the way I handled it but I am going to be man enough to fess up to that and own that. Outside of that, I move on and whatever he wants to say, I could really give a crap.”

IS THERE ANYTHING WRONG WITH THE TWO OF YOU GETTING MAD, BATTLING IT OUT NOW AND THEN? “I mean, there are probably pros and cons to it either way. I think it is probably good for the sport looking back at it. It gives a lot of people something to talk about. As long as it doesn’t affect you and your race team I don’t think there are really many negatives to it. I think our team is strong enough to kind of withstand this media storm or whatever you want to call it. I think we are plenty strong enough to get through it. We are a championship team. We can’t let something this small get to us. We all know better and know how to do that.”

FOUR YEARS AGO TODAY WAS THE DAY BETWEEN YOU AND MATT KENSETH WHEN HE PUT YOU IN THE WALL. WHAT IS IT ABOUT YOU THAT DRAWS THIS CONTROVERSY? “I don’t know. It beats me.”

WHAT IS THE DRIVER CODE AT THIS POINT BETWEEN NON-PLAYOFF DRIVERS AND PLAYOFF DRIVERS? “Everyone has something to race for. You hope to have space and respect out there but I am a racer, a hard racer and I won’t shy away from that. I understand that other people have things to race for. I am smart enough to realize that. Whether you are racing for 25th in points or racing for a transfer spot it doesn’t make my race any more important than theirs. Maybe that 25th spot in points is a big bonus for their team from the sponsor. Maybe that is a big manufacturer thing or just trying to get you a job for next year. Those are the things that you have to take a step back and look at the big picture and try to understand why everyone has to race as hard as they do, trying to get every spot they can. I understand that. That is why I race as hard as I can. I think sometimes you feel like what you are doing is the most important thing in the world. I am sure at times we all feel like that, no matter what your job is. In the grand scheme of things you are just another bug on this planet trying to make ends meet. That is probably the same for most everyone.”

ARE YOU MORE CAREFUL AROUND DENNY ON THE TRACK? “I have nothing to be careful about, he wrecked me. I don’t race him any differently. I am not sure he has handled this the smartest way so far.”

HAVE YOU TALKED AT ALL OUTSIDE OF AT THE TRACK? “No.”

YOU ARE NEVER INVOLVED IN LIKE A MINI DISAGREEMENT, YOU ARE ALWAYS IN THE MAJOR DISAGREEMENTS OR AM I MISREADING THAT? “Yeah, I guess that means we are running up front and racing for wins. That is what that means. You are up there and trying to win. The mini disagreements are when you are running 20th. If you are running up front and in the top-five they become escalated.”

HOW ABOUT THE IMPERSONATION HE DID OF YOU: “He missed it a little bit. Listen, he affected my character once, I am not going to let him do that again by throwing trash at someone and who they are and things like that. What happened was something on the race track and what happened afterwards was a lot of emotions and that is all I can control.”

DO YOU FEEL LIKE THE INTENSITY AND PRESSURE IS AMPED UP THIS YEAR IN THE PLAYOFFS MORE SO THAN IN THE PAST? “Intensity is ratcheted up because of what this rules package does. All the cars are closer together, so the intensity is up a little bit more because a mistake on the track isn’t a two or three spot loss because there were three cars within three-seconds. Now there are 10 cars within three-seconds so if you make a mistake you lose four, five or six spots. The intensity is high because mistakes are more costly.”

HOW DIFFERENT IS IT THIS YEAR COMING HERE NOT LOCKED INTO THE CHAMPIONSHIP 4? “We have been in this spot before too. We have been in both spots before. You would like to be the one locked in. That is a really great place to be. We are still in a great spot. We are still in if it was over right now. Obviously there are a lot of things that can happen in two races. We have to be solid for the next two weeks. If we win one, great. We have to be solid the next two, which I think we can do.”

WHAT MAKES A GOOD HANDLING CAR AT TEXAS? “You want something you can be aggressive with. Something that can race in traffic. This is a race track that is challenging to pass but it is also you are in traffic the whole time. You are always behind the car and the draft means so much but you have to be able to move around the race track and try to find air where you can and make passes when other cars make mistakes. You have to be in the hunt so when other cars make a mistake you can be there. You also have to have enough turn in your car to be able to be there on the long run as tires wear out and fuel burns off, you have to have something that turns for you. That is the challenging part, putting those things together.”

Toyota Racing – Denny Hamlin
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

FORT WORTH, TEXAS (November 1, 2019) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin was made available to media at Texas Motor Speedway:

DENNY HAMLIN, No.11 FedEx Office Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing

As driver code evolves throughout the year, where do you see it standing right now?

“They can do it really however they want to do it. Everyone has their own agenda, but I think for the most part everyone has been pretty respectful really. Every year that I have seen, the guys that are eliminated or not part of the Playoffs have been pretty respectful of letting those guys fight it out. I’m not sure really what the code is. I think that when I come up on one and I’m trying to pass them, I don’t expect them to race any differently than they have all year.”

Jenna Fryer tweeted about your upcoming surgery. How did it happen?

“I really don’t know how it happened to be honest with you, but it’s something that has been nagging really for years. I’ve had shoulder issues. It just got to the point where it was really bad and got it scanned and figured out what it was. It hadn’t really affected me in the car at all. That part has really been fine.”

You’ve been in a few post-race situations. What’s it like when it goes from you and the other guy to everybody?

“It usually starts with the drivers and ends not. It’s part of it. It’s just who’s going to be the first crew member to intensify the situation. I thought that my guys were pretty level to be honest with you through that whole deal. I think you could see quite a few times Joey (Logano) is right in front of them and no one lays a hand on Joey. I think it’s just lack of control that Todd’s (Gordon, crew chief, Joey Logano) got with his people.”

This is the best position you’ve been in. How do you feel about moving on and guaranteeing a spot in Homestead?

“I feel pretty good. We gained on the cutoff line. Obviously, we had one of our competitors win, which not what you want to happen. We go to every race track thinking we are going to win, and so, when we come here this weekend, and next, we are locked in on what do we need to do to win. That’s my focus. I don’t want to have to count on points, but if we do, we are in the best spot of anyone thus far. We are going to do everything we can to keep that and just keep having solid weeks, really, from start to finish. Through the Playoffs, the first round was not so great, but after that we have just had solid practices, we are qualifying where we thing we should, and the races have been really good for us, so we just want to continue that trend and not change anything even though the stakes continue to get higher.”

With the situation with Joey Logano last weekend and the space you took, does that go back to how he raced at Dover or is it just racing circumstances?

“I would lean more towards racing circumstances, but absolutely, I take in account who is beside me at all times. I was not going to give one inch. I misjudged. The on-track stuff was definitely my fault. There was no intention to run into him or run him into the wall or anything like that. Because I put myself at a pretty big risk there of cutting tires as well, but I was just trying to use all the space that I could. Certainly, if it was like a teammate or someone else beside me or really anyone, yeah, I probably don’t gas it up quite as soon and try to take all of that space. All that stuff plays a factor for sure.”

Is there something that can be done for further separation between drivers and crew members on pit road?

“It’s going to be a difficult thing. They already kind of have the crew members separated from the race cars after the race, but then, the crew members have to push the cars back, so that’s why we stop where we do. That’s why they are all corralled around the cars. It’s within about five minutes of us stopping and us getting out, that they have to push the cars to tech or wherever they are going to push them. That’s going to be difficult to do certainly. We, as drivers, are forced to stay at our race cars for a certain amount of time, but we’re not – we’re going to go do media. So, we are always going to kind of intermingle there. I think it will be tough to implement anything, but it starts at the crew chief and they have to have control over the guys, and they have to have some kind of protocol. What is the protocol? I think those things are in place with every race team, it’s just a matter of if it’s followed or not.”

What can you not do with your shoulder?

“It really has not limited me to be honest with you. It’s uncomfortable while sleeping. I can’t sleep on that side, but it really hasn’t limited me to be honest. I got a Cortisone shot in it, which really, really helped. That’s like my saving grace, when things start hurting. So that really changed. It went from being immobile to feels like there is nothing wrong with it right now to be honest. I can still lift weights. I can only do them a certain way. I have to limit my mobility on that part, but it hasn’t affected anything in my everyday life.”

When was the shot?
“Yeah, it was weeks ago, but it was just progressively getting worse over the late summer to early fall. So just a few weeks ago the doctors came and gave me a little bit of relief with that just kind of to get me into the offseason where I can fix it.”

From what I could tell in the video when (Chris) Gabehart (crew chief) restrained you, he said ‘It wasn’t worth it.’ Given as far as you have come this season, is there a point where you say that I’m not going to let Joey (Logano) get to me?

“I’m not going to let him touch me. First, the first thing, as a man you can’t just let that stuff happen. That’s the first thing. That doesn’t affect me, and we are talking about it right now, but within 30 minutes when I’m going in there to work, it stops. That’s my full concentration. Like I said, we go into every race track to win. This weekend is no different. We don’t self-label ourselves as a favorite. I don’t think we are. We’re not locked in to Homestead. We still have a lot of work to do. By no means is this thing given.”

Do you ever get the feeling that he just knows that he can get to you?

“No, he’s not that smart.”

Assuming you make it to Homestead, who do you think the other drivers will be and who do you hope doesn’t make it?

“I don’t know. I think whoever gets to Homestead, those four guys are probably going to be the toughest four. I don’t know. I think everyone is equally as good at Homestead. There is a lot of guys that have won a lot of races at Homestead that are in this final eight, so I don’t look forward to going against any of them to be honest with you, but I’m going to have to if I get there. You are just going to have your ‘A’ game for sure.

# # #

About Toyota

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Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS)
Friday, November 1, 2019
AAA Texas 500 | MEDIA AVAILABILITY

KEVIN HARVICK No. 4 Busch Beer Ford Mustang

IF YOU MAKE IT TO HOMESTEAD, WHO DO YOU THINK THE OTHER TWO DRIVERS WILL BE AND WHO DO YOU NOT WANT TO GO UP AGAINST THERE? “I don’t know. We will just have to wait two more weeks and see.”

AT THIS POINT IN THE SEASON, WHERE DO YOU LOOK ON HOW NON-PLAYOFF DRIVERS SHOULD BE RACING PLAYOFF DRIVERS? “You know, for me, the only thing I can relate to that is where I feel like I would be if I were not in the playoffs and that is I just don’t want to be in the storyline unless I am racing for a win. I think from that standpoint you just don’t want to be the one that ruins somebody else’s chance at having a championship. The further you go into this the higher the stakes get. I can’t speak for anybody else but I know that is the feeling that I have when I am not in a position to have a chance to win it. You don’t want to be a part of the story.”

WHEN IT COMES TO MIAMI AND THERE ARE JUST FOUR CARS LEFT, HOW MUCH ARE GUYS GETTING IN YOUR WAY AND HOW MUCH OF AN ISSUE IS THAT? “I think the guys that do this on a weekly basis know when too much is too much. You know when somebody is racing for something and you just need to get out of the way because you have one or two or three of them behind you. Most everybody knows when too much is too much. That is when you have scenarios like last week where you have Joey and Denny, one in and one out, becomes more difficult than probably needs to be. It just depends on those types of scenarios. Those were usually ones that become more difficult. I think as far as the teams go, I think the guys that have done this before just don’t want to be a part of the story and you don’t want that controversy dragging around if you are the guy racing for the win you don’t want the story to be that your teammate held someone up and that is why you won a championship.”

YOU RECENTLY WENT A FULL CALENDAR YEAR WITHOUT A SPEEDING PENALTY: “Oh thanks, I appreciate that.”

I GUESS YOU CAN YELL AT ME ON SUNDAY IF YOU GET ONE. WITH EVERYTHING THAT GOES ON AND YOU HAVE TO MONITOR, HOW TOUGH IS IT TO MAINTAIN THAT WHILE STILL TRYING TO GET AS MUCH AS YOU CAN GET? “We have been as aggressive on pit road as we have always been. I tell our young guys this, whether I have something to do with them or not. We still practice every week. Every week we go up and down pit road, in and out of the pit box. Hard onto pit road, hard off of pit road. It isn’t something you can let your guard down with. As you look at it, I feel like it is one of the reasons our team is still in it. I don’t feel like we have had that knockout speed that the Gibbs cars have had on a week to week basis. We have had it a few times and been able to capitalize on that but I feel like we have done a good job minimizing the mistakes and we have three more weeks to do that and hopefully you didn’t jinx us. It has been those types of scenarios. Solid execution of things, except for a few weeks that we have had here lately for the most part that have kept us in the mix all year.”

“I think as you look at that it reminds me a lot of 2017 where we just switched to Ford. I think this year we have had the speed. It just has been sporadic at different races to whether you hit it or don’t hit it. The execution has still been our number one thing that we have done that has kept us in the mix in my opinion consistently on a week to week basis.”

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS)

Friday, November 1, 2019

Page 5

KEVIN HARVICK CONTINUED …

YOU HAVE A SHOT AT BEING IN THE CHAMPIONSHIP 4 FOR THE FIFTH TIME IN SIX YEARS. WHERE WOULD YOU SAY THE TEAM IS AND THE ORGANIZATION RELATIVE TO THOSE PREVIOUS YEARS? “We have done nothing but shoot ourselves in the foot that last few weeks. We started last at Kansas and crashed at Talladega and I don’t know what we did last week, I guess it was just typical Martinsville. I feel like we probably had top five cars in those three weeks at the end of the race and didn’t have that solid execution finish in front of where you probably should have. I think the experience of the number 4 team and the execution and the things that we have done have definitely made the most out of what we have had as an organization. I think as an organization we haven’t been as consistent with the speed as we would like to be and it is difficult. We started behind, guessed the wrong direction, migrated back to the same direction – we have been in a number of different directions and still not 100-percent sure every week of where we need to be with all the different things you can do to the car from an aero side of things. It has definitely been a fight every single week in order to get the finishes that we have had and keep ourselves in contention. I think for us the experience and the continuity of the race team and the experience of being around each other has allowed us to get the most out of everything that we’ve got.”

THEY WILL PUT TRACTION COMPOUND ON THE TOP GROOVES NEXT WEEKEND AT PHOENIX. WERE YOU PART OF THOSE DISCUSSIONS AND HOW DO YOU THINK IT WILL CHANGE THE RACING? “I have been a small part of those discussions. I think NASCAR has done a good job of keeping most all of us in the loop as to what they are thinking. When you look at Phoenix, it wasn’t a great race for us to watch at the beginning of the year. I think that the traction compound is a good option. As you look at some of these race tracks where it has changed the complexion of the race. We have to have options and more than one groove. That particular race migrated to one groove and I hope that this opens it up a little bit.”

WITH THE START-FINISH LINE CHANGE AT PHOENIX WITH HAVING ALL THAT EXTRA ROOM ON THE RESTARTS, HOW DIFFERENT IS THAT THAN THE WAY YOU HAVE TO RESTART THERE COMPARED TO WHAT YOU HAVE ALWAYS BEEN DOING? “It is an awkward restart zone just because you wind up in that corner and you wind up in an awkward spot on the race track and then you go into that dogleg and it winds up being able to go as many lanes as you feel like going. Usually that means if you go too far that the guys inside of you on the race track are probably going to go straight up the race track. You are going slow enough that you can use that whole apron in turns three and four as well all the way down to the wall. At some point traffic has to merge as you come off of what used to be turn four, now turn two, in order to make it in between the two walls. We have seen a couple accidents happen on the exit of turn two and it is just a lot different. You would think they would just move the start-finish line and it has affected the restarts way more than it affects the finishes of the race. It is a cool area that they have created down on that end of the race track with the start-finish line and grandstands and fan zone and everything that is on that end of the finish line. Aside from all the chain link fence and the maze to get in and out, we could have a heck of a maze if we just made those fences solid and tried to find our way from point A to point B to get out of the place. It has created a neat little zone down on that end of the race track.”

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS)

Friday, November 1, 2019

Page 6

KEVIN HARVICK CONTINUED …

DO YOU FEEL THE INTENSITY RATCHETING UP MORE THIS YEAR THAN PREVIOUS YEARS? “I don’t think it is any greater, personally, aside from the first year. I think after the first year everybody learned that you had to make some things happen every once in awhile and had to put it all on the line for your team when you had those situations to do that. You look at Joey (Logano). He is usually pretty put together but the pressure of the situation and things he lost last week kind of put himself in a position where it caused some chaos. Even Matt Kenseth. Look back at Martinsville, he lost his mind. That never really happened with Matt. It is not any more intense than it was. Maybe there are some guys getting to experience that for themselves in different situations but we have seen some of the most mild mannered people and guys that are pretty good at handling themselves lose their mind. I would say it is pretty close to the same.”

ANY COMMENT ON WHAT HAPPENED AFTER THE RACE LAST WEEK? “I don’t want to have a comment about it. Let those guys answer the questions.”

WILL YOU BE DOING MORE TV WORK WITH FOX NEXT YEAR FOR XFINITY RACES? “Right now we are just focusing on driving the car and making sure we get through the end of the year and we will worry about all that secondary stuff later.”

IS IT SOMETHING YOU ENJOY DOING? “At this point, I don’t do anything that I don’t want to do. I do the things that I enjoy and try to enjoy and that is something that I have enjoyed doing. It is definitely that I have had fun doing but it isn’t something that I have been focused on currently.”

Toyota Racing – Martin Truex Jr.
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

FORT WORTH, TEXAS (November 1, 2019) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Martin Truex Jr. was made available to media at Texas Motor Speedway:

MARTIN TRUEX JR., No.19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing

At this point in the Playoffs, how do you think non-Playoff drivers should be racing Playoff drivers?

“That’s a difficult question. Obviously, everyone is out there to do the best job that they can for their team, for their sponsors, for themselves. Everyone is in a little bit of a different situation – some guys have rides, some guys don’t. I don’t know that it changes a whole lot from the rest of the season to be honest. I guess maybe if it comes down to a win – racing a Playoff guy, maybe it does a little bit. But I think you just try to race the way you always have. Be respectful, and race guys the way you want to be raced. I don’t know if it really ever changes in my opinion.”

You haven’t won here, but you have been close a lot. Is there one thing you can point at and say this is the reason that you haven’t won here?

“Not really, it has been a lot of different things over the years with a lot of different rules and the track changing throughout the years. We’ve been close a few times in all situations, so it has not been really one thing. It’s just sometimes – like I talked about in Martinsville last week – it has just hasn’t been our time yet. We kind of struggled a little bit here in the spring race, and so looking forward to see what we can do here this weekend with all we’ve learned this year and the things we’ve worked on and the momentum we have and the confidence we have. So hopefully, we can put it to good use this weekend, and do everything right, and get our first win here.”

Can you talk about how much things have changed since you have been paired with Cole Pearn (crew chief)?
“Obviously, the proof is in the result. It has been really good. Cole is an awesome crew chief, and he’s a great team leader. He does a lot to help me with the things that I need to be better at. He holds everyone accountable, but at the same time has fun and everybody has fun. There is a lot of reasons, but for him and I we just clicked from the start, to be honest. Our approach, our background, and obviously, the success has been amazing. You never know when it’s going to change, but they all work really hard and hopefully, we can keep it going.”

Other going for the win, does it really matter what happens the next two weeks?

“I prefer not to piss anyone off. Honestly, we are going to race hard and try to win, but we don’t need any enemies. So, we will just do our normal deal to be honest with you. I don’t think we do anything different than a normal weekend. I don’t think we do anything different than we did in Martinsville last weekend. We always do the best we can for everyone on our team and all of our sponsors and again ourselves. We want to win. We have a lot of confidence, and we have great equipment and a great team. Why not take advantage of it?”

How much of redemption factor is there knowing that you are headed back to Homestead this year with another shot at the title?

“I think for me personally to be able to get back there and have another shot at it is great. I think last year was last year. You can’t turn back time, you can’t go back and change things and do things different. I think we did a great job in that race last year. We had a great car. It just didn’t play out the way we needed it to. Sometimes those things happen in racing. There’s a lot of things that need to go your way to win these things. It’s really difficult. I think our strategy will be similar. We will go there and try to do the best job that we can do. But just to be able to go back there again, and have that opportunity is huge. It means everything to us. At the start of the year, that is your goal – How do we get to Miami? How do we make the Final Four and get another shot at the championship? I would say it’s completely unrelated to last year. We are just ready to go again and try for another one.”

Heard that you were asked to do the Rolex race next year. Did you get asked and are you considering it at all?

“I did, and I passed. Just because I didn’t think it was going to be as much fun as I hoped. I don’t know. I raced the Daytona road course once, and I was pretty terrible at it. I really didn’t want to tear their car up to be honest.”

# # #

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in the U.S. and North America for more than 60 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands. During that time, Toyota has created a tremendous value chain as our teams have contributed to world-class design, engineering, and assembly of more than 38 million cars and trucks in North America, where we have 14 manufacturing plants, 15 including our joint venture in Alabama (10 in the U.S.), and directly employ more than 47,000 people (over 36,000 in the U.S.). Our 1,800 North American dealerships (nearly 1,500 in the U.S.) sold 2.8 million cars and trucks (2.4 million in the U.S.) in 2018.

Through the Start Your Impossible campaign, Toyota highlights the way it partners with community, civic, academic and governmental organizations to address our society’s most pressing mobility challenges. We believe that when people are free to move, anything is possible. For more information about Toyota, visit ToyotaNewsroom.com.

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS)
Friday, November 1, 2019
AAA Texas 500 | MEDIA AVAILABILITY

RYAN BLANEY, No. 12 Wabash National Ford Mustang

HOW DO YOU SEE THE DRIVER CODE AS FAR AS HOW A NON-PLAYOFF DRIVER SHOULD BE RACING AROUND PLAYOFF DRIVERS AT THIS POINT IN THE YEAR? “I mean there isn’t a written code or anything. I think it is just being courteous to people that are running for a championship. I know when I got knocked out last year in the Round of 12 that you cut those guys a little bit more of a break in certain stages of the race for sure. Just being a little more courteous. You still have to race. If you aren’t a playoff guy and you are racing a playoff guy for a win or a top-five or something like that you are going to race him hard. You aren’t just going to pull over for him. But at times in the race maybe you cut those guys some breaks. I have done that in the past. You show those guys kind of some niceness. There is not really a code. They can race however they want to race. I am not going to be upset either way. Some drivers are different than others. I expect everyone to race hard but maybe cut the playoff guys a break, but I can’t speak for everybody.”

HOW IS THE TEAM MORALE WITH TEAM PENSKE BEING THAT THE TEAM HASN’T WON A RACE OTHER THAN YOU AT TALLADEGA? “I am worried about the 12 group and our morale is really high. Obviously we want to get two cars into Homestead. Me and the 22. That is tough to do but I think the best thing you can do is worry about your own group. Like I said, our group is on a pretty big high right now. Talladega is gone and in the past. We are really excited about these tracks coming up here. We had a strong showing at Martinsville and got a lot of stage points and finished decent there which kept us in the hunt. You go out and grab a bunch of stage points the next two races and finish good, if you don’t win the race obviously, you keep yourself in the hunt. These next two tracks, here and Phoenix, have been really good to us in the past and have been good to us this year. We are really looking forward to the rest of the way here and trying to keep chugging along.”

WITH RESTARTS SO IMPORTANT FOR TRACK POSITION, HOW DIFFERENT IS IT NOW AT PHOENIX WITH THE FLIP-FLOP OF THE TRACK THERE? “Yeah, I think you saw a good bit of it in the spring race there when they moved the start-finish line to that dogleg. You saw a lot of cars immediately drive to the apron as soon as you cross the start-finish line. I think that is just going to be the same. It will probably be even more intense. If you have to grab some spots. YOu saw us four-wide into one on a handful of occasions. You just hope you are in a spot going forward and not getting stuck three-wide, you are putting someone three-or-four-wide. We made that move work a couple times in the spring and had it done to me a couple times in the spring. Sometimes you can;t do anything about it. It just opens that door and before you couldn’t really do that. It just closes up into what turn three is now. I think it makes it exciting for the fans and gives drivers more opportunities and I think you are going to see that definitely take a step up when we go back next week.”

I KNOW YOU ARE A STAR WARS FAN BUT WHAT PROMPTED THE DECISION TO DRESS AS PRINCESS LEIA FOR HALLOWEEN AND WHAT HAS THE REACTION TO THAT BEEN LIKE? “I thought it was funny. I just thought it was a funny costume. Halloween you can dress as whoever you want and it was my house so I figured I could do whatever I wanted. I am a big Star Wars fan. I couldn’t find anyone to be Jabba with me. A lot of people didn’t know what I was. They were like, “What are you?’, I was like, ‘Watch the movie man.’ It was fun. That was the third time we have done that Halloween party at my place and we had a pretty good turnout and everyone has a lot of fun. What prompted me, I don’t know. I saw it online and thought it was funny. I have gotten mixed reviews about it. At the end of the day I don’t really care. I thought it was funny at the time.”

IF YOU WOULD HAVE FOUND A JABBA WOULD THEY HAVE BEEN HOLDING THE CHAIN ATTACHED TO YOU? “Probably, probably for photos. Bubba doesn’t know anything about Star Wars and he wouldn’t have gone as that anyway. Maybe next year I will step it up. I thought that was a pretty risque outfit. Luckily it wasn’t too cold. It was okay.”

HOW LONG HAVE YOU HAD THE DARTH VADER TATTOO? “A lot of people thought they were fake. I wanted to be able to tell people they were fake and they wash off, but they don’t, no matter how hard you scrub. I have been a fan of tattoos for a long time and I have a handful now and am working on my leg there. I have a couple Star Wars one on my leg. They stop at my knee right now. I have a mother tattoo on my knee. It is something I have always enjoyed. One of them I have had for a couple years and the other one I just got in January.”

LAST WEEK AFTER THE RACE MARTIN TRUEX JR. SAID THAT HE HAS NEVER FELT AS MUCH INTENSITY AND PRESSURE IN THE PLAYOFFS AS THIS YEAR. THIS IS THE FIRST YEAR YOU HAVE MADE IT THIS FAR, HOW HAS IT FELT TO YOU? “Yeah, it is what your whole season is based around. He probably didn’t see the intensity at Martinsville because he led so much and was up front. It definitely gets intense. You saw emotions run high last week. There were a lot more small ones around that. You always get that at Martinsville. Any race, playoff race or not. I don’t really look at it any differently. If you make each round or whatever. At the end of the day you still have a shot at making it to Homestead. We have to do like last week, go to the track and do your job as best you can and run as well as you can and stay out of trouble and win the race. I have always had the same mindset throughout the whole year. I think if you change your mindset coming into the playoffs it is a little different. Why aren’t you in that mindset all year? That is kind of how we have always approached it and being aggressive when we can and approach the playoff races the same as any race. Maybe you are in some spots where you have to go for it. If you need to win the race you might do something you might not do in the regular season. The intensity is high. There are a lot of great cars. There are seven other cars in this round of 8 that are really great and there are only three spots left open to get in. You don’t want to see a playoff guy win at Martinsville if you aren’t that guy. It just locks a spot. Those spots are really hard to come by now. I could easily see a playoff guy winning this week. The tension ratchets up just like any playoff system in any sport. Everyone gets really emotional because you realize what you are going for and you have a shot at it.”

DO YOU FEEL GOOD ABOUT HOW YOU HAVE HANDLED THE PRESSURE OF ALL THIS SO FAR? “Yeah. Sometimes things get wound up and you get passionate about what you do because it is your life. We spend 38 weeks a year doing this. It is what our lives revolve around. The pressure side is never really something I look at. I have been doing it since I was a kid. I grew up watching my dad deal with it. Your mind is on different things if you are thinking about pressure and not thinking about how to win the race or make the car better and that isn’t good. I have never really thought about that.”

DID YOU NOTICE A DISCERNIBLE DIFFERENCE WITH THE PIT CREW ON SUNDAY? “I thought they did a really good job. They did a fantastic job on Sunday. They gained a lot of spots on pit road. My guys were gaining spots on pit road too. The other 12 guys, my original group. I just thought everyone did a good job last week.”

WHAT WAS THE BIGGEST DIFFERENCE YOU NOTICED WITH HOW THE CAR HANDLED AT PHOENIX IN THE SPRING COMPARED TO PAST YEARS AT PHOENIX? “Just like any track. The downforce added, we were going a good bit faster there through the corners and qualifying speeds were way up. You don’t take motor away there and you add a bunch of spoiler and a lot on the front splitter the cars go faster and you can drive them harder. I did notice something in that race that I thought was good. I thought we could run higher in one and two and even three and four than we did in the past. Part of that was putting the compound down on the race track and running the tirs. The drivers have been working with NASCAR a lot to do that at more places. Here we got that done in the spring and I felt it helped the racing. Certain tracks you won’t do it like Homestead. You don’t want to touch that because it has naturally aged really well. The cars are different but I think everyone has a pretty good feel of how the cars drive now and have been in traffic. It has been a long time since we were there at Phoenix in the spring. I think everyone has a pretty good idea of how you have to pass cars and drive them and we will go back there and be really comfortable right off the bat.”

DID MARTINSVILLE GO BETTER THAN YOU EXPECTED? YOU WERE RIGHT IN THE THICK OF THINGS FROM THE START TO THE FINISH: “No, I mean we have run really good at Martinsville in the past. It used to be a really big struggle for us the first couple of years going there. I think the spring race last year is when things really clicked and we led a lot of laps. I knew what it needed to feel like in practice then to have a shot in the race and how to drive it. Once you kind of click at a certain track that you have been struggling at it completely changes everything. I am waiting for that day to come at Richmond for us when it clicks and figure out how we need to be to be good in the race. I thought it went really well for us. I would have liked to finish better. Our car wasn’t very good on short runs. We needed 50 laps. Those late restarts hurt. That is what we needed to do, run up front all day, get stage points and stay out of the mess. We closed in on that gap which is what we need to do these next two weeks for sure.”

Schluter Systems – Texas Motor Speedway – Race Advance
Event: AAA Texas 500
Venue: Texas Motor Speedway (Fort Worth, TX)
Format: Three Stages – Stages End: Lap 85, 170, 334 = 501 Miles
Date/Broadcast: Sunday, November 3 at 3:00 PM ET on NBCSN

On the heels of his seventh top-20 of the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season, a career high for the 28-year-old, Corey LaJoie ventures to the Lone Star State on the hunt to extend that streak with the Schluter Systems Ford.

Prior to joining Go Fas Racing (GFR) this season, LaJoie had two top-20 finishes: an 11th-place finish at Daytona and a 16th-place result at Las Vegas.

The Charlotte, NC native will carry along the familiar Schluter Systems colors for the sixth and final time this weekend with just two races remaining after this weekend’s AAA Texas 500.

Schluter Systems offers an assortment of over 10,000 proven system solutions for the installation of tiles and natural stone. Their products include metal and PVC profiles to protect and improve the appearance of tile edges and transitions, uncoupling membranes to prevent cracks from appearing in tiled floors, waterproofing systems for showers and other wet areas, and a modular screed system to improve heat transfer in hydronic heating systems.

Last weekend LaJoie powered to his career-best finish at the 0.526-mile short of Martinsville Speedway, 18th, and looks to do the same this weekend in No Limits, Texas by improving his current best finish of 28th in four starts at the 1.44-mile track, which he set earlier this season in the No. 32.

The 334-lap event is set for Sunday, November 3 at 3 p.m. ET with coverage on NBCSN.

LaJoie on the upcoming weekend at Texas Motor Speedway:

“I’m ready to get down to Texas for the last primary race of the year for our friends at Schluter. Hopefully we can continue the momentum of the last couple weeks and give that bright orange Mustang a good run Sunday. We’re down to the last couple of races here as the season comes to the end and we are in an important points battle for our group, so every point matters.”

LaJoie MENCS career highlights at Texas Motor Speedway:
Starts: 4
Best Finish: 28th (2019)
Average Start: 32.5
Average Finish: 34.8

In the Rearview Mirror: First Data 500
LaJoie and the No. 32 team collected their seventh top-20 of the season by finishing 18th at Martinsville Speedway while flying the catchy Keen Parts Scooby-Doo Mystery Machine scheme. He qualified 28th for the first race of the NASCAR Playoffs Round of 8, but was relegated to the rear of the field at the start for technical inspection issues.

Fortunately, LaJoie was in the free pass position when the first caution flew as he reported he needed more rear grip. After the restart LaJoie would be scored in the 29th position until navigating around David Ragan for the 28th spot. He concluded the 130-lap first stage in 28th and would journey to pit road under the stage break for tires, fuel and adjustments.

Thirty laps into Stage Two, the driver of the No. 32 Keen Parts Ford maintained his place in the top-28. A caution for the No. 13 of Ty Dillon allowed the Mystery Machine team to take the wave around to return to the lead lap in the 23rd position, on older tires. The No. 32 would be shuffled back a lap down with 30 laps to go in Stage Two but a yellow for Clint Bowyer once again permitted LaJoie to take the wave around ahead of a four lap bolt to the green-and-white-checkered flag for the second stage. He powered to the stage finish in the 23rd position.

Under the break, crew chief Randy Cox gave LaJoie four tires and fuel in preparation for the kick-off of Stage Three. He continued to rain the 23rd spot in the running order on lap 300 until going a lap down 13 laps later to race leader Martin Truex Jr. He pitted for a fresh four and fuel as the field came to a slow for a caution triggered by the No. 3 while gaining a position on pit road. Shortly after another yellow flew, this time for a multi-car collision on the front straightaway, the GFR Ford arrived back to the attention of Cox’s crew for a change of tires and more fuel, in the 20th position. LaJoie assessed his Mustang as “A little too free” with 104 laps to go as he had powered up to the top-20, breaking into the 17th position. Over the final stretch, the third generation racer would again take the wave around and restart 13th with 24 circuits to go. The No. 32 Ford crossed the finish line in 18th, capping off an amazing weekend with the Keen Parts Mystery Machine livery.

————————————————————–
About Our Team

About Schluter Systems:
Schluter®-Systems products are specifically designed for the tile industry to ensure that installations maintain integrity and durability. Their product line includes over 4,000 items, including tile trims, uncoupling membranes, waterproof building panels, electric floor warming systems, and shower systems. Schluter®-Systems is renowned for its state-of-the-art technology with attention to detail for highly functional and visually appealing results. For more information on Schluter Systems, North America, please visit https://www.schluter.com.

Get Corey LaJoie Updates:
To get live updates during the race weekends follow @coreylajoie on Instagram and Twitter. Make sure to give Corey a “like” on Facebook – “@CoreyLaJoieRacing”. For a detailed bio and updated in-season statistics, please visit www.coreylajoieracing.com .

About Go Fas Racing:
Go Fas Racing (GFR) currently fields Ford Mustangs in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series for driver Corey LaJoie. Located in Mooresville, North Carolina, GFR has competed in the NASCAR’s premier series since 2014; fielding cars for some of NASCAR’s top drivers, including past champions. To find out more information about our team please visit www.GoFasRacing.com.

Paul Menard and the Menards/Jack Links team head to Texas Motor Speedway hoping to capitalize on the speed the No. 21 Ford has shown in recent Texas races.

The Wood Brothers Ford has been fast at Texas for the past three seasons, but so far the finishing positions for the most part don’t reflect it.

In the spring of 2017, Ryan Blaney, aboard the No. 21, won the race’s first two stages and led the most laps but wound up 12th after getting tangled up trying to come from mid-pack in the third stage. He came back in the fall and finished sixth.

Since Menard took over the No. 21, the team has continued to show speed, but has had issues in the race that kept them from getting the finish they expected.

Back in March at Texas, Menard finished sixth in the first 85-lap stage then moved up to fifth in the second.

He got up to third place early in the final segment of the race before he had to make an unscheduled pit stop for a loose wheel and wound up 19th.

Crew chief Greg Erwin said he’s believes he’s prepared another fast Ford Mustang for Texas.

“We’re looking to build on a very good performance in the first race this year,” he said.

“Obviously a lot has changed with our cars since March, but I feel like we have kept our car builds very competitive with the field and should have another opportunity for a strong showing.”

Eddie Wood said “We just haven’t had a good, clean race without something out of the ordinary happening to us there.”

Qualifying for the AAA Texas 500 is set for Saturday at 6:05 p.m. (7:05 Eastern Time), and the race is scheduled to start just after 2 p.m. (3 p.m. Eastern Time) on Sunday with TV coverage on NBCSN.

Menards

A family owned company started in 1958, Menards is headquartered in Eau Claire, WI.  Menards has more than 300 retail stores located throughout the Midwest in the states of IL, IN, IA, KS, KY, MI, MN, MO, NE, ND, OH, SD, WI and WY.  Menards is known throughout the home improvement industry as the low price leader.  It’s famous slogan “Save Big Money at Menards” is widely known and easy to remember.  For more information, visit Menards.com, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest.

Wood Brothers Racing

Wood Brothers Racing was formed in 1950 in Stuart, Va., by Hall of Famer Glen Wood. Wood Brothers Racing is the oldest active team and one of the winningest teams in NASCAR history. Since its founding, the team won 99 races (including at least one race in every decade for the last seven decades) and 120 poles in NASCAR’s top-tier series. Fielding only Ford products for its entire history, the Wood Brothers own the longest association of any motorsports team with a single manufacturer. Glen’s brother, Leonard, is known for inventing the modern pit stop. The team currently runs the Ford Mustang driven by Paul Menard in the famous No. 21 racer.

Lone Star State Next Stop for Roush Fenway

Roush Fenway takes two former winners at Texas Motor Speedway to the Lone Star State this weekend when the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS) converges on the 1.5-mile oval for a Sunday afternoon 500-mile event. Newman, a 2003 Cup series winner at TMS, is coming off his 13th top-10 of 2019, while Stenhouse, a 2012 Xfinity series winner at TMS, searches for a strong run on Sunday.

Texas Motor Speedway
Sunday, Nov. 3 | 3 p.m. ET
NBCSN, PRN, SiriusXM Channel 90
·         Ryan Newman, No. 6 Roush Performance Ford Mustang
·         Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 17 Fastenal Ford Mustang

“Dream Season”

Roush Fenway won both the first MENCS (Jeff Burton) and NASCAR Xfinity Series (Mark Martin) races at Texas in 1997. Burton began the afternoon from the fifth position and led 60 laps en route to the inaugural victory.

Houston, We Don’t Have a Problem

Roush Fenway has earned nine MENCS victories at Texas, dating back to the inaugural event in 1997. Former drivers Burton, Martin, Greg Biffle, Carl Edwards as well as Matt Kenseth have captured the checkered flag in the Lone Star State.

J.R.’s ‘08 Sweep

Edwards swept the 2008 MENCS races for Roush Fenway at Texas, leading a total of 335 laps in the two events.

9 A.M. in Dallas

Roush Fenway has started 142 MENCS races at Texas, recording a total of nine victories, 38 top-five finishes, 59 top-10 finishes, an average finish of 15.5 and has led 2,524 laps. Biffle earned Roush Fenway’s most recent victory at Texas in the April 2012 event.

North Dallas Forty

Roush Fenway has earned eight victories, 26 top-five finishes, 47 top-10 finishes and an average finish of 13th at Texas in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Roush Fenway won three of the first four races at the 1.5-mile oval.

Jack Roush; Texas Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Member

Based on the strength of Roush Fenway’s numerous accomplishments at Texas, team owner Jack Roush was inducted into the Texas Motor Sports Hall of Fame in 2013.

Tale of the Tape

Roush Fenway has started 293 races all-time at Texas Motor Speedway, recording 18 wins, 76 top-fives and 133 top-10s. RFR Fords have captured nine poles at the 1.5-mile track and led 3500+ laps while turning more than 107,000 miles.

Roush Fenway Texas Wins
1997       Burton        Cup
1997       Martin         NXS
1998       Martin         Cup
1999       Martin         NXS
2000       Martin         NXS
2000       Biffle           Truck
2002       Kenseth      Cup
2005-1    Biffle           Cup
2005-2    Edwards     Cup
2007-1    Kenseth      NXS
2008-1    Edwards     Cup
2008-2    Edwards     Cup
2010-2    Edwards     NXS
2011-1    Edwards     NXS
2011-2    Bayne         NXS
2011-1    Kenseth      Cup
2012-1    Biffle           Cup
2012-1    Stenhouse  NXS

By the Numbers at Texas Motor Speedway
Race      Win       T5           T10         Pole       Laps       Led        AvSt      AvFn     Miles
142         9              38           59           3              45145    2524       16.6        15.5        67717.5
101         8              26           47           5              19350    705         12.3        13.2        29025
50           1              12           27           1              7321       290         13.1        13.2        10981.5
293         18           76           133         9              71816    3519       14.5        14.3        107724

Camaro Debuted in NASCAR’s Premiere Series in 2018

DETROIT — Chevrolet will switch to the Camaro ZL1 1LE in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2020, replacing the Camaro ZL1, which made its series debut in 2018.

Camaro ZL1 1LE — based on the fastest, most track-capable production Camaro ever – will make its competition debut next February during Daytona Speedweeks, which opens the 2020 NASCAR season.

“The ZL1 1LE is the highest performer within the Camaro production-car lineup,” said Jim Campbell, U.S. vice president of Performance and Motorsports. “We took lessons from the production car and applied them to the new 2020 Cup car.”

Chevrolet engineers optimized aerodynamic performance by employing an array of tools, including computational fluid dynamics (CFD), simulation, and reduced-scale and full-scale wind-tunnel testing.

Camaro ZL1 1LE joins the Team Chevy family of racing Camaros already competing in NASCAR Xfinity Series; NHRA Funny Car, Pro Stock and Sportsman classes; Michelin Pilot Challenge GS Class; and Pirelli World Challenge GTS division.

Rich Camaro Racing Legacy
The outgoing Camaro ZL1 debuted in 2018 and made an immediate impact by winning the pole for the season-opening Daytona 500. That accomplishment was followed quickly by a win in the Daytona 500 a week later.

In 2019, Camaro ZL1 has produced seven wins thus far and powered five Team Chevy drivers – Chase Elliott, Kurt Busch, Kyle Larson, Alex Bowman and William Byron – into the 2019 NASCAR playoffs.

Camaro ZL1 1LE brings a racing legacy to NASCAR. The 1LE debuted on-track and in the showroom in the late 1980s for the third-gen Camaro. Fourth- and fifth-gen Camaros also featured 1LE.

The current production Camaro ZL1 1LE – with its lighter wheels and dampers, thinner rear glass and a fixed-back rear seat – sheds more than a 50-pounds than a standard ZL1 Coupe and is powered by a 650-horsepower, supercharged LT4 engine.

Camaro ZL1 1LE builds on a winning legacy: Chevrolet has won a record 39 NASCAR manufacturer championships – including 13 consecutive titles from 2003-2015. In addition, Chevrolet drivers have achieved a record 31 championships, including Jimmie Johnson’s seventh in 2016.

Camaro ZL1 1LE joins Camaro SS, which has been Chevrolet’s entry in the NASCAR XFINITY Series since 2013, winning 76 races, four driver’s championships and four manufacturer’s championships.

ABOUT CHEVROLET
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is one of the world’s largest car brands, doing business in more than 100 countries and selling more than 4.0 million cars and trucks a year. Chevrolet provides customers with fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.